Four focus groups — season ticket holders, corporate partners, suite holders and random fans — are meeting at PNC Park this week to help pick a new buccaneer symbol. The present model, shown here, features a snarling pirate in a black and red bandana. It has been around since 1997.

“It’s time to update it a little bit,” executive vice president and chief marketing director Lou DePaoli said.

I sort of like the old one, but that may be a bit too oldish. It’s kind of hard to make a cool logo when your mascot is a person. Either it’s too realistic looking or else you go all stylized with it which gets you into some weird territory.

They note that they are keeping the gold “P” as the primary symbol of the organization. Maybe just emphasize it even more and slap it on stuff on which the pirate logo currently appears? I dunno.